Winner takes all as Calzaghe faces ‘Left Hook’
Calzaghe may reign unbeaten after 40 professional fights but the memory of his last amateur loss 16 years ago still burns as painfully as if it happened yesterday.
The then 17-year-old fighter vowed never again to taste defeat after losing a decision to Romanian Adrian Opreda in the 1990 European Junior Championships in Prague.
Calzaghe, who tipped the scales bang on the 12-stone limit, with Lacy one pound less in Manchester yesterday, said: “I cried every time I lost when I was an amateur. I hated it every time and I swore after I lost a close decision to Opreda that it would not happen again.”
Calzaghe has made a fine job of keeping his word, with 17 successful WBO title defences spanning nine years, making him the longest-serving world champion in his sport today.
But nobody since the long forgotten Romanian has taken the Welshman closer to the brink than American IBF champion Lacy is expected to do in Manchester’s almost sold-out, 20,000-capacity MEN Arena.
The relentless 28-year-old Lacy is also unbeaten in his 21 professional contests and was persuaded to come over to England, such is the career-defining nature of Sunday morning’s fight.
Testament to the high-profile nature of Sunday’s contest is the entourage Lacy brings with him in the shape of the Showtime pay-per-view cameras and a sizeable contingent of US journalists.
Lacy said: “My dream is to unify the two super-middleweight belts and I have never turned my back on a dream. I love being the underdog and that is why I came over here to take this fight.”
In fact the Florida native starts a slight favourite with the bookmakers on the back of an impressive 2005 campaign in contrast to Calzaghe’s stuttering performance last time out against Evans Ashira.
A hand injury in that fight caused the initial November 5 date for this fight to be postponed and drew a stinging rebuke from the Lacy camp, who questioned Calzaghe’s true intent.
It is a criticism which has been frequently levelled at the 33-year-old during his long reign as champion - and another reason why Calzaghe is itching to prove his doubters wrong.
Calzaghe said: “I have been champion for eight years and finally I have got a fighter who has got ambition and wants to fight for my titles.
“It does hurt when you need to compete with people slagging you off and saying different things about you. But if anything it just motivates you even more.
“This is the first fight where I have something to gain. Jeff is a highly-regarded fighter in the US and he has got something I want, another belt. This is the biggest fight of my career - my destiny.”
Lacy, who sat glum-faced through the media circus this week and left most of the talking to his ebullient promoter Gary Shaw, is a fast and attacking fighter nicknamed “Left Hook” for his best punch.
His dramatic second-round stoppage of top contender Scott Pemberton in November while Calzaghe was recovering from his hand injury arguably marked the American out as the new narrow favourite.
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